Retail words of the week: romance is in the air and so is magic pizza

The following are retail search terms around the world with the largest increase in hits for the week ending February 5, according to Experian Hitwise.*

Generic search terms "cheap LCD tvs," "shelf units" and "slim fit shirts" were popular in the UK over the past week. However the most searched for item was "magic pizza " - refering to a convex steel disc with numerous holes designed to go under a cooking pizza in order to prevent the middle from going 'soggy.' The device was first shown in 2008 on popular British TV series Dragon's Den in which entrepreneurs have to pitch their business ideas to a panel of successful business people.

The Magic Pizza device can be bought on Amazon.co.uk here for £4.99 (€5.89).

Romance was in the air for internet shoppers in the USA where the phrase "Valentine's Day flowers " was one of the top search terms. With the Super Bowl, the biggest event of the American football calendar, taking place February 6, the term "Super Bowl recipes " was also highly ranked.

In terms of apparel, Americans were searching for "thigh high boots " and retailer "American Eagle" Outfitters. The website for American Eagle Outfitters is currently suggesting a range of Valentine's Day gifts "for him" and "for her." Suggestions under gifts "for him" include "I love you" boxer shorts and a range of causal shirts while  the selection of gifts "for her" includes a wide range of underwear as well as the brand's own Aerie fragrance.

Internet shoppers in Singapore were also preparing well in advance for Valentine's Day by searching for "flower delivery Singapore." Other popular search terms this week included musical instrument store "Swee Lee," retailer of custom-made guitar parts "Warmoth" and the opening hours of supermarket chain "Ntuc."

In addition, Singaporean tech fans were eagerly searching for news of the "iPad 2"; the second in the series of Apple's highly successful tablet devices is expected to be launched sometime in March.

Auction site "eBay " and its subsidiary "eBay.com.au " were once again popular search terms in Australia, as was the phrase "portable air conditioner ." According to the Australian Bureau of Meteorology, temperatures currently range between 26 degrees Celsius in Sydney to 34 degrees Celsius in Perth.  

Experian Hitwise* - Fast-moving search terms under the industry category Shopping and Classifieds, ranked by the largest percentage increase for the week ending February 5 compared with the week ending January 29.